Cheating On My Bicycle
I love riding my bike. It is a very solitary activity, and at the same time, its a great group activity. I have taken my 2 youngest on the bike trail right by my house. Its fairly flat, paved, long enough, and just right for a 12 and 10 year old. I have occasionally taken my oldest son on a bike trail that was created from an old railway line. He likes that one as it has side trails and he and his friends can disappear from me and I am not too concerned. This trail is quite a ways a way, and gas prices what they are, it seems silly to drive to a place to ride a bike. Better to stay closer to home.
Its very easy to talk myself out of riding, though. Its raining, it's cold, it's winding, it's late, it's too early...you get the idea. So I have a stationary bike. I can ride it, watch tv. Only problem is, is that I do 30 mile and I don't break a sweat. Yes, I'm moving, but its not making me fill like I've accomplished anything. So, I have a treadmill. Now this treadmill is not a compact little thing. Yes it can fold up, but it really is huge, bulky, heavy. There is only one place for it and that is facing a wall. A wall of grey paneling.
So I have to keep occupied. I listen to my ipod. That occupies me for maybe a song and a half. I need something else. So I read. YOU READ!! HOW CAN YOU DO THAT? Well, I'm not going to lie to you: I'm not doing a four minute mile on this treadmill. I maintain a pretty good clip, for me. I walk, no problem 3.5 mph. 4 mph, I have to hold on and can only do that for a shorter amount of time. But by reading and listening to the ipod, I don't realize how long I'm on the treadmill, or how fast or slow I'm going. My treadmill has a timer and goes up to 99 minutes. There have been several times that while walking and reading, the treadmill just stops, because I've reached the time limit. I don't even realize that I'm doing it. It great, the feeling of stepping off, folding the treadmill back up. I feel like some workout stud! Hey, the treadmill quit, not me. I also have noticed the inches ever so slightly melting away. I can definitely see it in my face, and feel it around my waist.
But there's my bike. Sitting in the garage. Not moving. Getting dusty. Dirty. Angry. You know Hell hath no fury like a Schwinn scorned. I fully expect to go out there and find a few spokes missing. Maybe a flat tire. It's already starting. My reflector on the handle bars, just fell off. Just sitting in the garage. Not moving. It just dropped off the front and laid face down in a puddle of old oil. The chain is looking a little rusty too. The chain guard was bent the last time (oh, and how long ago was that? Do you think you can ignore me, and just expect that I will be here, at your beck and call!?) I took it out. The other bikes have moved away from it in the garage. My sons bikes have the wheel turned away from mine, as if to say "Don't look at it, if you don't make eye contact it won't see you." It's shameful, really. It's a perfectly good bike, it gives me as great a work out as the treadmill, yet I seem to be only care about the digital read out, and the heart monitor, and its younger and hipper.....
Wait. Maybe I'm just projecting. Then again, maybe not.
I will ride this weekend, I promise. That is if it doesn't rain, or it's warm enough, and not too windy....
Its very easy to talk myself out of riding, though. Its raining, it's cold, it's winding, it's late, it's too early...you get the idea. So I have a stationary bike. I can ride it, watch tv. Only problem is, is that I do 30 mile and I don't break a sweat. Yes, I'm moving, but its not making me fill like I've accomplished anything. So, I have a treadmill. Now this treadmill is not a compact little thing. Yes it can fold up, but it really is huge, bulky, heavy. There is only one place for it and that is facing a wall. A wall of grey paneling.
So I have to keep occupied. I listen to my ipod. That occupies me for maybe a song and a half. I need something else. So I read. YOU READ!! HOW CAN YOU DO THAT? Well, I'm not going to lie to you: I'm not doing a four minute mile on this treadmill. I maintain a pretty good clip, for me. I walk, no problem 3.5 mph. 4 mph, I have to hold on and can only do that for a shorter amount of time. But by reading and listening to the ipod, I don't realize how long I'm on the treadmill, or how fast or slow I'm going. My treadmill has a timer and goes up to 99 minutes. There have been several times that while walking and reading, the treadmill just stops, because I've reached the time limit. I don't even realize that I'm doing it. It great, the feeling of stepping off, folding the treadmill back up. I feel like some workout stud! Hey, the treadmill quit, not me. I also have noticed the inches ever so slightly melting away. I can definitely see it in my face, and feel it around my waist.
But there's my bike. Sitting in the garage. Not moving. Getting dusty. Dirty. Angry. You know Hell hath no fury like a Schwinn scorned. I fully expect to go out there and find a few spokes missing. Maybe a flat tire. It's already starting. My reflector on the handle bars, just fell off. Just sitting in the garage. Not moving. It just dropped off the front and laid face down in a puddle of old oil. The chain is looking a little rusty too. The chain guard was bent the last time (oh, and how long ago was that? Do you think you can ignore me, and just expect that I will be here, at your beck and call!?) I took it out. The other bikes have moved away from it in the garage. My sons bikes have the wheel turned away from mine, as if to say "Don't look at it, if you don't make eye contact it won't see you." It's shameful, really. It's a perfectly good bike, it gives me as great a work out as the treadmill, yet I seem to be only care about the digital read out, and the heart monitor, and its younger and hipper.....
Wait. Maybe I'm just projecting. Then again, maybe not.
I will ride this weekend, I promise. That is if it doesn't rain, or it's warm enough, and not too windy....
posted by Momcani at 6:10 PM
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